Are you planning a tent camping trip to Torreon? We've got you covered. Find the best information on tent campgrounds near Torreon, including sites, reviews, and tips. Each tent campsite offers quick access to one or more of Torreon's most popular destinations.
The picnic ground is located 10 miles northeast of Grants at an elevation of approximately 7,437 feet. Ponderosa pine, pinon, and juniper trees provide shade and some privacy for visitors. There is a group picnic area that was built in the 1930's by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). Remember to pay attention to road conditions and your vehicle's abilities before driving off of the main road.
Guide
Rio Chama RV park in Chama, New Mexico, is at the intersection of the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad and the upper Rio Chama. A nice place to stay May 1 thru mid October. The train passing by twice a day is an exciting event and it's a short walk to the train yard.
Pull through sites have great shade and full hookups with 30 or 50 amp electrical service. Spacious tent sites with full service restrooms nearby. Pet friendly with dog park and free wifi. A great place for fishing, train watching and relaxing.
Scout
This is one of the places to camp in New Mexico
Traveler
We stayed here for our annual Cub Scout camp out. We tent camped around a group site. It’s next to the Coronado Monument and the Rio Grande with an awesome view of the Sandia mountains.
Guide
Only had 3 or 4 spots for camping. A spot was big enough for an RV while the others were mostly for tent camping. We found some waterfalls brushwhacking along the creek but be prepared to get your feet wet.
Ranger
These coordinates are a rough estimate, but this entire forrest road is filled with amazing campsites you can simply pull off and camp in. currently there’s a fire ban, so it makes it hard to stay warm at night, but the stars are amazing. it’s quiet. it’s lovely. there’s canyon walls for miles. it’s really amazing. some of these pics are from the nearby canyon that’s a bit of a walk up the road, but most are from our campground. loved our first experience camping in New Mexico!
Guide
Fenton Lake is usually busy and reserving months ahead of time is a good idea. We like spots number 1 and 17 for tent camping. Rangers patrol the campgrounds and in general people are usually well behaved. Nice hikes along the creek. Getting a fishing spot may be hard to find sometimes as the small lake is usually circled with people fishing. Fishing is usually good though as it is well stocked. Temperatures at night can get down in the low forties after being in the eighties during the day.
RangerI’ve been coming to Fenton Lake for camping with family since I was little and we’ve always loved it. It’s beautiful and well taken care of. Park rangers are always making their rounds and always friendly and helpful. Plenty of tent sites; only a few have some good privacy. Not many electrical hookups though. Trash bins and vault toilets are usually close by. Love the trail that runs along the side of the camp and the stream that runs adjacent to the campsites. Fishing is fun but get there early because spots fill up quickly. Only downfall I’ve seen is that theres only one water spigot and it’s right at the lake.
GuideFound this Campground to be pretty nice overall! Mainly RV's and Campers, in fact I didn't see a single tent or tent site during our stay. The Lots are fairly close together and all have a little covered picnic table area next to the drive through RV slots. Bathrooms and showers worked just fine, though my girlfriend said the womens shower would turn itself off every 30 seconds or so (the mens worked just fine).
It's about 20 minutes north of albuquerque which is nice since you're far enough away to be out of the hustle and bustle but close enough to explore the city. We went for the Hot Air Balloon Fiesta and we could see the balloons from the campgrounds early in the morning.
There's also a Bad Ass Coffee down the street which is one of my favorites!
Guide
Face it, you don't go to Chaco Canyon, or Chaco Culture National Historical Park, for the camping experience. You go for the history, archaeology, ruins, mystery, astronomy and appreciation for the peoples who built these great houses 1200 years ago. But the facilities for tent camping are adequate-to-better, with very good restroom facilities and drinking water. No showers - carefully read the descriptions. No T-Mobile coverage to speak of, although if you make the climb up to Pueblo Alto to overlook Pueblo Bonito, I did get a weak signal that was good enough to download emails, but that was it.
Some of the campsites are closer to each other than others. The camp is arranged in a loop, generally I'd prefer to be toward the far end end of the loop for vehicle privacy.
CAUTION: Pay attention to the weather and especially rain in the preceding days. I drove up to Chaco from Grants (from the south) and got stuck in about what turned out to be about a foot of mud under a few inches of standing water in a wash 4.4 miles from the Chaco Visitor's Center. Don't risk it! I drove out to the north on the road that connects to NM 550. That's the much preferred road IMO, and apparently the one also usually recommended by the NPS staff.
Legend**Campground Review: **
Imagine 1.25 Ma ago an eruption blew apart the landscape of Northern New Mexico that would rival the shear volume erupted by the world famous Yellowstone hotspot! Jemez Falls and its namesake campground are the closest, largest, and most developed CG to the Valles Caldera proper and the entrance to the caldera's access roads. The Jemez Falls CG is more developed than the nearby primitive (dispersed) sites that surround the flanks of the caldera proper, this CG offers 50 single sites and 2 double sites, $10 and $50 respectively. Most of the sites can accommodate RVs and trailers up to 40' in length with good options for tent camping as well. Each site has the usual metal fire ring, along with picnic tables and a paved driveway/parking area. You can reserve sites from mid May through Mid September.
Even if you plan to stay here for a couple weeks (which is the limit) you'll have more than enough to keep you preoccupied! If you want to drive around and hike or fish in the caldera proper then you will need to go to the Valles Caldera Visitors Center and buy a pass. They typically cost $25 but when we visited during the International Balloon Fiesta the fee was waived. If they are charging when you arrive, you can also use your National Parks Pass to get entrance. Be sure to arrive early on the weekends as they restrict the # of permits they hand out.
Now with all this exposed rock you know there's going to be some amazing climbing! All of the rock in the immediate area was created by the caldera and related volcanic and magmatic activity in the area in the past few million years. This gives you the opportunity to climb on some "bulletproof" welded tuff (hardened volcanic ash) much like what exists at the world famous Smith Rock State Park in Oregon. If you want to find out more about the interesting geology of the area you can look Here
Product Review:
Being a Ranger for the Dyrt allows us to test and review gear from time to time! This time we got to test out the Men's Free Rein Jacket by Red Ledge.
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Score: 4/5
RangerVery nice RV/Tent park. Operated by the town of Bernalillo, New Mexico. Prices range from $10.00 per night for tents and $20.00, $30.00, $35.00 per night for Rvs. Great view of the Rio Grande and Sandia Mountains. Just 15 minutes from Albuquerque. All RV sites have electric but most have electric(30 amp) and water. None have sewer hookup but there is a dump station on the property. We stay here every time we come to New Mexico. Highly recommend this campground!
Scout
This camp spot is one of the best free camp sites in New Mexico. Would definitely go again. Highly recommend to anyone who loves to camp and drive four wheelers
GuideNew Mexico is just beautiful and this park really brings that to life. Its a great place for fishing, camping, hiking and breath taking river veiws. Love every picture I took here.
Ranger
Visited the coal mine campground after driving a 500 mile day, so it was a set-up eat and crash situation. I did make a reservation on line, but that cost more than the $5 per site fee and was not necessary even though it was memorial day weekend. The fee is great because it is primitive, no electricity, no water at all, not just hookups, but the bathrooms were nice and clean with no sinks.
If you are prepared for a primitive camp with your own water and batteries for your electronics it is great. They have fire rings, grills, picnic tables and level places for tents.There are also nice back-in sites for boondocking RVs and the road up to the campground is fine for big rigs.
I ran into two mountain biker's here from Ireland that were riding the Continental Divide trail from The Mexican border in New Mexico to the Canadian border in Montana. They were staying here since the Trail goes through here. Paddy & Conner were very interesting people and I was fortunate to have run into them here.
I enjoyed my stay with a peaceful quite nights sleep and a short hike in the morning before breakfast cooked on the campfire. I would recommend this over a hotel stay if your passing through Grant's New Mexico on I40. You can probably get a site for the night anytime your passing through.
RangerI've stayed here twice now since being in New Mexico. This site is right on the water, overlooks the canyon, and is close to a hike to the right side of the canyon through a dried up riverbed. I *love* staying here. It's so peaceful, quiet, enough trees to keep you shaded from the harsh sun here. The road is runner friendly, so you can go on a jog if you like. Its definitely a campsite for people looking to strictly hang out.
views and sunsets are EPIC. Stay here instead of the packed Rio Chama campground if you're a casual camper who doesn't need amenities. And pick up your toilet paper so this place stays nice!
TravelerHad a relaxing, quiet three night stay from 8/10 - 8/13/21 with our Jayco Octane Lite SL161 toyhauler. The only facilities are clean vault toilets. Some pull through spots for smaller camping units. I would not recommend this campground for large RVs.
15 sites available with about 8 that I could comfortably park my camper in. All sites have table, barbecue, and fire pit/ring. All sites are reservable online at Recreation.gov. When arriving without a reservation and staying for more than one or two nights be aware that empty sites without a reservation posting may have a reservation that has not been posted. You could wake up and find a reservation posted at your site and have to relocate to another available site.
There is a nice hiking trail available from the campground. La Mosca lookout is a nice drive from the campground with beautiful views. Head up to the Gooseberry Trailhead to hike to the top of Mt Taylor the highest mountain in NW New Mexico.
Camping fees for this campground are increasing to $10 per night next season.
LegendThis campground is not easy to get to, so get your head around that. The last 5 miles of the unpaved road getting to the park boundary will be a challenge, so take it slllooow. It is worth it, and you’ll have fewer crowds at this amazing place.
The campground is similar to many national parks, with nicely spaced out, no hook up campsites. The toilets are clean and well maintained, flush toilets, and sinks, but no showers. Water is available throughout the campground, and there’s a big sink for dumping your dish water.
The campground is ideal for solar power, as is the New Mexico weather. We also had no problem connecting with Starlink, but there was no LTE or phone service to speak of.
Hiking in the park is simply stunning. With the ruins of the Chaco Culture all around, you can pick your adventure or simply drive the park loop road, stopping to wander through the remains of this vibrant place that was once the heart of a vast cultural empire.
Cycling is also a great option -- bike/ hike your way around the park from the campground. The visitor’s center is good, and worth spending some time in. The closest town with services is a long long way away, in any direction, so come prepared with your supplies, food, etc.
There is a convenience store/ gas station about 20 miles out, but the drive back along the rough road will take an hour in an RV.
This park is so worth a visit and the campground makes it easy to stay for as long as you can to soak up the solitude of this simply amazing place!
Scout
Living in Albuquerque, this has become our long weekend, get-away destination of choice. The CG is relatively small (12 sites) and is typically very quiet. The road and sites are all paved, with a mix of larger spaces (fit our 35 ft. 5th wheel just fine) and smaller tent / pop up trailer size spots. All sites have tent pads. The area provides lots of opportunities to hike or drive the many forest roads that are nearby. If you enjoy exploring in an atv/utv the forest roads range from well maintained to pretty rough. There is a fresh water hand pump and two vault toilets. Cellular connectivity is nonexistent.
Scout
Clear Creek was full so we camped her for the night and had a great place to park the pop up and our friends were out behind us in their tent. Very beautiful area!
Traveler
Plenty of space/privacy for being an established site. Camp host was pleasant. We have a Tentsile tent and we’re please with the amount of big trees to choose from to hang it. Plenty of downed wood to gather for fires.
Guide
Great place on a Tuesday, hardly anyone there and campsites close to the water. Great for sleeping, I didn't bother pitching my tent and slept out under the shelter. Cool breezes came down the valley in the evening and overnight. It's dark in the canyon in the morning and late afternoon. Water available.
Guide
The campground is very well maintained, camp host makes sure that restrooms are clean and smell free. Campsites are clean. Actual sites are paved, with gravel areas for tents. Fire pits are large and well built. Nice walking path along the stream/creek. Good place to take a walk after munching down on your favorite camp food.
GuideI didn’t realize some sites are for RVs and some are for tents. I sleep in the back of my pick up truck and was stuck in the middle of RVs running their generators. Still loved the area. Great hiking right off the campground. Nice restrooms. 
TravelerWe were able to find a very private spot with easy access to the river!(went on a random Saturday) We will be visiting again. Great for our dog too. Some spots are unshaded, so recommend you bring a tent cover or something.
LegendWe stayed here for one night in the summer of 2017. The sites are fairly basic: a spot for your tent, a fire pit/grill, a picnic table, and a communal bathroom and water.
There's basically no natural shelter here, and it can get very hot and windy! If you're car camping (as opposed to RV-ing), this is definitely something to keep in mind. We didn't have any kind of awning or shade other than our tent, and having some shade would have made a huge difference! There are grill/fire pits at each site, but no wood was for sale when we visited.
The bathrooms were clean enough, and the site was well maintained.
Overall, the campsite is decent, not great, but ultimately you're here for the Chaco Culture park, which is amazing! Highly recommend going to one of the star parties when they have them and doing a ranger-led tour.
Guide
Wonderful site. You are surrounded by old growth pine trees while camping in an old CCC base camp. Our site was right next to a small stream, which along with the wind in the trees made for a nice experience while falling asleep.
The tent hosts work hard to keep the site very clean and cared for.
We will be back.
TravelerCamped here twice so far. Great location for popups, tents, and some spots for larger travel trailers, but not many. It fills up fast and the place can be noisy with ATVs racing through the site. Developed sites, and a creek runs along one side of the camp. Toilets are onsite and I think the fee was $10 / day. Take bug spray, lyme carrying ticks do live here.
Torreon, New Mexico, offers a variety of tent camping options that cater to outdoor enthusiasts looking for adventure and tranquility in nature.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Torreon, NM?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Torreon, NM is Cuba Hwy Pulloff on Forest Road 88 with a 4-star rating from 1 review.
What is the best site to find tent camping near Torreon, NM?
TheDyrt.com has all 8 tent camping locations near Torreon, NM, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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